Today at Sam’s Club I saw an old man with an exceptional green hat. As soon as I saw it, I knew I needed to find one like it for myself. I approached the man and asked him about it. He told me it was the only one like it that he had ever seen in his life, and that he doubted I would be able to find a similar one. He said he couldn’t remember who gave it to him - it was a long time ago - but that he thought the hat may have been a US Green Beret “dress cap.” If this is the case, I wouldn’t really want to wear it; I think something like that you have to earn the right to wear. But is this in fact the case? I looked up “green beret dress cap” and I sure didn’t see any hats like this one. At first I thought it might have been a Civil War era cap or a reproduction of one, but on further inspection, it didn’t really look that much like one (not tapered, different kind of band, different color).
The guy let me take a photo of the hat; here it is.
Or similar to another German hat, the stormtrooper coffee can kepi.
But it’s not a green beret dress cap. That has always been a (clean) green beret. The cap in the photo looks like a belted version of this cover that some of us remember from our 1960’s GI Joe. This hat was never Army issue: some CO’s would decide they liked it, and everyone in the command would have to buy one at the PX.
(that was never uncommon in the old days. Those yellow neckerchieves worn by the frontier cavalry were also non-regulation private purchase)
It looks military “ish” in style but I’m really thinking it looks more like an northern woods outdoorsman’s cap. Possibly even a fishing hat where the belt in front can be used for fly fishing tackle.
What was the material felt or suede or something else?
Kind of; all the fatigue caps I saw are noticeably less rigid in design and have softer looking lines. This old guy’s cap was very stiff-looking and seemed to be made out of a thick, sturdy material. The bill also doesn’t have a series of concentric stitched lines. And the little belt and buckle is integral to the design of the hat, rather than being something simply thrown over a standard hat.
Again, this hat may have other hats that look kind of like it. But lots of hats look kind of alike. In terms of the details, it was pretty distinctive.
I’ll second or third this. I have a stash of old photos of my dad’s uncles hunting and fishing and recognize this hat as being very very similar to one in the photos. Sadly, it’s about 30 years to late to ask where the hat came from or what it’s called.
Of those linked, the first is the closest to what I want, but it’s still not there. On no other hat have I seen the combination of a flat top, an overall rigid cylindrical shape, a straight bill, and the belt buckle perfectly centered in front. And that elegant looking band, tapered in the middle and flaring out to the sides.
